Unanswered by Liza Mynx (books under 200 pages txt) 📕

about to laugh and not bawl because this was the place where Chris and I spent a lot of time together, but I guess just being back made me feel good.
The park was actually a memorial park for the man who founded our town, but we jut called it the old park because we didn’t pay attention in school whenever the teachers talked about him so we didn’t know his name. It wasn’t very big, but there was a stone pathway that went in two directions. One led to a fountain that was surrounded by a big walk-in garden. The other led to a statue of the man and a small grove where the cherry tree was. Obviously I walked down that one.
It wasn’t very long before I came upon the little bench under the small tree. I was prepared to see a tall teenage boy, but no one was there. I walked around the tree and found no one. I decided that he must be running late so I sat down on the bench.
When I sat down, I had a strange feeling like I was being watched. I looked around, but I was the only one in the entire park. Other people felt like spending their time at the bigger community park.
“Hello?”
No answer.
“Just my nerves,” I tried to say, but I didn’t sound convincing even to myself.
Then, it happened. I fell off of the bench.
I felt light, light as a feather as I rose up a second later. I was surprised, or really scared, when I looked down and saw me laying on the ground! I was uninjured, but my eyes where open and they were white! My mouth was curved into a satisfied smile. My body was laying perfectly straight, like Snow White when she’s in the glass coffin. I tried to scream, but no sound came out of my mouth.
Am I dead?
No. I didn’t ‘see the light’ and I wasn’t floating towards heaven. I was standing above my unconscious, paler then usual(and I’m pretty pale) body trying to scream but my voice wasn’t working.
I looked over at the bench for some reason. It was like there was a magnetic pull coming from the bench making me turn my head. I couldn’t move anything, not even my mouth when I tried to scream again.
I was watching a scene of me, Chris, and Sammy in the park three years ago. We were all sitting on the bench in that order, and we were laughing!

I remember this! This is when Chris and Sammy first got together! Chris thought it would be cool if we invited Sammy to show her our spot and they ended up liking each other! This is so weird! Why am I seeing this? What’s the purpose? I really am crazy!
I stopped thinking as I watched the scene, watched all of us laughing. Oh, Chris had the sweetest laugh! It was contagious too! Once you heard him laugh, you were compelled to laugh with him!
“This place is so pretty,” Sammy said.
“Yeah, we come here all the time, just to hang out,” I told her. My voice wasn’t as deep as it was now. I wasn’t as mature.
“Oh, really,” Sammy said with a suspicious tone in her voice. “All the time to ‘hang out’?”
Even now I could practically see the air quotes around her words.
“Yes! Just to hang out! There is nothing going on between me and Claire!”
The sound of is voice would have brought me to my knees if I could move. It was so soft and pure, I loved the way it moved over me. I miss him so much!
Then, the scene disappeared. I was ready for this weirdness to be over, but I wasn’t back in my body yet.
“Oh, come on,” I said before realizing I could move.
“What’s the matter, Claire?” I could recognize that voice anywhere.
“Chris! Where are you,” I asked turning around, trying to find him.
“What are you doing here Claire? Don’t you know never to meet anyone you know from a chat room outside of that chat room?”
I tried to trace his voice, but it was everywhere! It didn’t come from one point, it was surrounding me. I finally found him sitting on the bench under the cherry tree.
“How...why...what’s...” I couldn’t ask any of the questions that I wanted to. I was so confused.
“Right now you are in the spirit world. Don’t be afraid, you will be back in your body when we’re done talking. I brought you here so I could talk to you without losing energy and having to come back.”
I tried to process that, but it took me a few minutes. He was patient though. He just sat on the bench smiling at me.
“What do you mean you lose energy and you have to come back?”
“Well, there are only two ways you can see me. One way is if you come to the spirit world. I prefer that way more because I don’t lose any energy and you only wake up with a bad headache. The other way is if I come to your world, but I only have so much energy and I can’t stay there for long.”
“Why...why did you say it’s my world? It’s your world too.” My voice almost cracked, but that would have meant that I was about to cry, and of course I don’t cry. This is one of those times where I’m glad I don’t cry because I don’t want him to see me like that.

“Claire, I have been dead for a year now. I’ve come to accept that, your mom has accepted it; you’re the only one who hasn’t. Now, we need to talk about why you’re here.” I was about to say something, but he held his hand up dismissively. “You know about how I talked to your mom and how I saved her.” It wasn’t a question, but a statement.
“Wait, you brought me here...you know I know about what my mom said...” I gasped. “You’re GhostBoy!”
He looked at me like I was crazy, and I don’t blame him. “Yeah I am. Uh, I can’t believe it took you this long to figure that out. Anyway, you remember what I said to her right?”
I ignored his question because I was thinking of some myself. “How were you able to chat with me? Are there computers in the spirit world?”
He looked a little annoyed by my question, but then he laughed. “No. Alright, if I explain this will you listen to me tell you why you’re here?” I nodded so he continued. “Right, now you are a spirit, and you can see your body on the ground right there,” he pointed to my motionless body. “So, obviously, it’s not like we have our own world. It’s more like we live on different plains in one world.” He must have seen the confusion on my face because he then went into explaining what he said. “There are different parallel plains on the earth. You live on a plain where only living things and bodies are able to be seen without any cross overs. I live on a plain where we can see you and each other, but you can’t see us. A cross over is when a presence from one plain goes to another plain. Like some spirits, you refer to them as ghosts, cross over from our plain to yours. Right now you have crossed over from your plain to our plain. Do you get it now?”
“I get that, but you haven’t answered my question. How were you able to talk to me through the computer?”
“I crossed over and jumped into your computer. You know all those times where I wouldn’t talk for a while? I was back in the spirit world regaining my energy. Now do you understand?” I nodded slightly because it was really hard to follow but he went on to talk about something else anyway. “Now, you remember what your mother said about what I said right?”
“Yeah, she said you told her to help me find the ‘guilty one’. How did you manage to save her life in that car accident anyway?”
He looked really agitated. “I really can’t tell you. It’s a rule.”
“Rule? What? Do they give you a rule book when you become a ghost?”
I was really just joking, but the look on his face told me that I was right.
“When you become a ghost these people who call themselves ‘The Council’ tell you all these rules that you have to follow,” he explained.
“Or what?”

That look in his eyes. They said that what would happen was worse then death itself. I didn’t expect an answer from him.
“So, one of the rules is not telling how you saved someone?”
His head turned away from me. “Sort of.”
Then, he was right next to me. His eyes darted everywhere, making sure no one was around I guessed. But no one was there, in this plain or my true plain.
“Truth is, saving your mom was against the rules. I was lucky enough not to get caught. So telling you how I saved her would hint to The Council that I broke a rule.”
He was on the bench in the next millisecond.
“Now, back to what I was saying. So you do remember what your mom said? Anything else you remember?”
Gosh Chris! Could you give me a second! A person who crosses over to another plain that co-exists with the plain they live on can only grasp things so fast!
“I remember. And I also remember that text you sent me and those other times you talked to me on my plain.”
“Okay, by the guilty one you know I mean the one who killed me. They were wrong when they said I committed suicide, Claire. Someone killed me.”
“I knew that all along, Chris. Now, do you know who it was?”
He had a guilty look in is eyes, but his face made it look like he was trying to remember his past when he was alive.
“No, I don’t.” That look was still in his eyes.
“Chris, you’re lying! Now, tell me the truth. Do you know who killed you?”
He sighed. “Okay, I do know.”
“Then tell me! We can take the case to the judge and then...”
“Then what? What Claire? Look, there are rules in our world like there are laws in your world. I can’t tell you who it was. And you can’t take this to a judge because you have no evidence. The only thing you’d be able to say is that your dead best friend told you! They’d send you to the nut house before you could even say case closed!”
I felt my face go hot with anger. “Then what am I supposed to do?! You can’t tell me who the person is, and I’m no detective and neither is my mom! How are we supposed to do this?!”
He answered calmly, “There aren’t any rules against me giving you clues to who did it. Will you help me?”
I thought. Well, he is...was my best friend and we always said we would do anything for each other because we were friends. And, I can’t let that killer continue to hurt people!
“Okay, give me what you have.”
“Well, you know the person. They are close to you, and they knew me.”

I waited, but he didn’t say anything else. “That’s it? That’s all you can tell me?! We both know about a thousand people! How am I supposed to narrow that down?!”
He was about to say something but there was a loud noise. It sounded like a